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When the Dead Speak
358 pages, Paperback
Published September 12, 2022
27 people want to read
About the author
Sheila Bugler
31 books114 followersI'm the author of the Ellen Kelly and Dee Doran crime novels. My first stand alone novel, The Lucky Eight, is published in July 2021.
I grew up in a small town in the west of Ireland. After studying Psychology at University College Galway, I left Ireland and worked in Italy, Spain, Germany, Holland, Argentina and London before finally settling in Eastbourne, where I now live with my husband, Sean, and our two children.
I grew up in a small town in the west of Ireland. After studying Psychology at University College Galway, I left Ireland and worked in Italy, Spain, Germany, Holland, Argentina and London before finally settling in Eastbourne, where I now live with my husband, Sean, and our two children.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 12, 2026
Apart from the odd typing error, I enjoyed this book. Dee (the protagonist) was a bit annoying at times, getting grumpy with her partner for not being honest with her, when she was keeping things from him herself, but, despite this, I enjoyed the pace and plot of this book, and would recommend it to crime fiction fans.
February 14, 2024
Extraordinary that I have not come across Sheila Bugler's books before. This is the perfect investigative journalist procedural (of course the police are involved) and it was one of several books given to me as a Christmas present by my neighbour. Why this book in particular? Because it's set in Eastbourne, a seaside town I know so well and have visited many times located just twenty miles along the coast from me. It gave me a little thrill to read that the DCI lives in a cottage along the road from East Dean to Birling Gap, a road I have travelled many times. (Sheila Bugler lives in Eastbourne).
Sheila handles this story of two murders that occurred sixty years apart with great skill, developing the tension to an often unbearable point as Dee Doran, local journalist, and girlfriend of DI Ed Mitchell, is intrigued by a murder that sends shockwaves through the community. A body is discovered laid out on the altar of an Eastbourne church. Sixty years earlier another woman was found in the exact same spot. Is there a connection between the two. Whilst Dee is told by the police to keep out of their investigation she starts asking questions. Someone is keeping secrets and will do whatever it takes to keep them safe.
When the Dead Speak is one of the best thrillers I have ever read and I have learned that this is number two in a series of four. I have ordered the first in the series - there are questions about Dee's earlier life that I need answers to.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a beautifully crafted thriller.
Sheila handles this story of two murders that occurred sixty years apart with great skill, developing the tension to an often unbearable point as Dee Doran, local journalist, and girlfriend of DI Ed Mitchell, is intrigued by a murder that sends shockwaves through the community. A body is discovered laid out on the altar of an Eastbourne church. Sixty years earlier another woman was found in the exact same spot. Is there a connection between the two. Whilst Dee is told by the police to keep out of their investigation she starts asking questions. Someone is keeping secrets and will do whatever it takes to keep them safe.
When the Dead Speak is one of the best thrillers I have ever read and I have learned that this is number two in a series of four. I have ordered the first in the series - there are questions about Dee's earlier life that I need answers to.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a beautifully crafted thriller.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews